It’s yet another year when the seasons are changing from winter to spring, and most people are thinking about chirping birds and blooming flowers. Everyone, that is, except PSC students. The thought on many students’ minds is what are we going to do when downtown floods when the snow begins to melt? First of all, most cars will float away down the Pemi River if the college doesn’t give us somewhere to park up away from the PE Center. If the water gets as high as the bridge, we will not be able to cross it to get to the PE Center for classes and sporting activities, let alone move our cars from the rising water line.
The possibility of flooding seems like a hassle when it comes to the PE Center and students’ cars, but it can be a lot of fun too. There is a chance that the college could cancel classes. If we are free from school, we could get into our tubes and rafts and float right down Main Street, with a six-pack of our favorite malt beverage to make the frigid water a little more bearable. We could also wear our wet suits and swim from Samaha’s to Biederman’s, right on down to Won Kee for a scorpion bowl. The college should always cancel classes in times of inclement weather, but downtown businesses should never stop catering to us. What else is there to do but spend money on a day off from school?
There is also the possibility that classes will not be canceled during the flood, which is more believable, since the college rarely ever closes. All the snow in the world could dump itself on Plymouth, but we would still have to trudge to class. So how could we get from Rounds to Hyde if there are a few feet of water in between? Of course we would be on our own in this situation, without help from anyone, so we’d have to paddle our way around in rafts and small boats and harnessing them to vagrant bike racks breaching the icy surface. All of our classes would be moved to the upper floors, and teachers would still be happy to teach, even though they had to swim six hours to get there. That’s how dedicated the teaching staff is here at Plymouth State College. They’re the ones that have to drive in all of the bad weather and they still show up every day. All we have to do is walk across campus, and we still frump around in bed and miss class.
Our living arrangements on and off campus would definitely not be improved by the flooding either. Most of the off campus housing is very old and not properly taken care of. Water could cause houses and apartments to collapse, or even float away. As for on campus housing, the residence halls may be able to take the water damage since the buildings are so used to it. The bathroom floors seldom go without an inch of water on them anyway. The apartments have had their share of water problems in the past months too, and will probably still be in the same state when the flooding starts. So if students don’t want to go out and enjoy the opportunities the flooding brings, they can just lock themselves in their houses, apartments and rooms and hope for the best.
So get ready for the flooding. Go out and stock up on Ramen and hot chocolate and buy your tubes and rafts while Wal-Mart still has them in stock. If you are too broke at this time in the school year, rent outdoor equipment from the HUB and get the most out of what the college has to offer. Be sure to grab a Fast Takes everyday and save what you don’t eat for when you really need it. And don’t forget to pick up some duct tape, because we all know it’s sure to save our lives.